Volvo will be saying goodbye to the internal combustion engine in 2019 and saying hello to the electric vehicle. The well known, Swedish car company is set to become the first major automaker to start producing hybrid and electric vehicles only. Hakan Samuelsson, Volvo’s President and CEO, released a statement that indicated, “2018 marks the end of the solely combustion engine powered car”. In the new year, Volvo promises that all of its models will be either fully electric or fully hybrid. This new strategy comes with a hefty goal, selling one million cars by 2025. Although this is a high-reaching goal, it is not impossible. Telsa, for example, has become the pioneer of the electric car. They have sold an estimated 84,000 electric vehicles thus far. Telsa and its achievement in the industry prove the demand for energy efficient cars is there. Within two short years, Volvo plans to introduce five new electric and hybrid vehicles. Two of the brand new vehicles will be built by the company’s high performance spin off unit Polestar and Volvo will build the remainder exclusively. We are seeing a pattern emerge within the industry, more and more other major automakers are striving to go electric. However, a challenge can be timing and making sure all the ducks are in a row while the need is still relevant. Before a new vehicle can roll off the assembly line, there are years of research and development that takes place. Another challenge is altering consumers’ minds that electric cars are unaffordable. Analysts predict that by 2025, an electric car will be less expensive than a conventional engine. We are on the cusp of major industry changes!